Linda Horianopoulos

Research Interests:

Diversity of yeast biology and metabolism

When most people think of yeast, they think of the species we typically use for bread, beer, wine, and as a model organism in biology. However, there are more than a thousand yeast species, each with their own metabolic capabilities! My work aims to characterize the variation present in the biology of these different species to understand which genes provide desirable traits in yeasts. From these fundamental insights we can then apply this knowledge through strain modification to enhance the desirable traits.

Academic Background

B.Sc.(Hons) in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Northern British Columbia, Prince George, Canada

Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada

Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, USA

Current research opportunities:

Students are an incredibly important part of my research program and are valued members of the team. I aim to help mentor and guide each student to achieve their goals while working as part of a team to make progress towards understanding how we can harness the awesome diversity of yeasts. I believe that students from different backgrounds can bring their knowledge and experiences and contribute to a stronger research program in the lab.

Undergraduate students

Any undergraduate student interested in a research position should reach out directly through email. Students with interests in microbiology, molecular biology, genetics, bioinformatics, or biotechnology including fermentations are especially encouraged to reach out.

Graduate students

Students interested in pursuing graduate studies at the Master’s or PhD level should reach out directly by email to discuss opportunities and project ideas.

Featured Publications

(* authors contributed equally, see Google Scholar for a complete list)

Horianopoulos LC, Rokas A, Hittinger CT (2025) Convergent evolution of aerobic fermentation through divergent mechanisms acting on key shared glycolytic genes, preprint on bioRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.10.02.679963

Aranguiz K*, Horianopoulos LC*, Elkin L, Segura Abá K, Jordahl D, Overmyer KA, Wrobel RL, Coon JJ, Shiu S-H, Rokas A, Hittinger CT. (2025) Machine learning uncovers gene families impacting oxidative stress resistance across yeasts, Nature Communications. 16(1):5866. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-60189-3

Black B, da Silva LBR, Hu G, Qu X, Smith DFQ, Alcázar Magaña A, Horianopoulos LC, Caza M, Attarian R, Foster LJ, Casadevall A, Kronstad JW. (2024) Glutathione-mediated redox regulation in Cryptococcus neoformans impacts virulence, Nature Microbiology. 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-024-01721-x

Horianopoulos LC*, Gluck-Thaler E*, Benoit Gelber I, et al. (2021) The Canadian Fungal Research Network: current challenges and future opportunities. Can J Microbiol. 67(1)13-22. https://doi.org/10.1139/cjm-2020-0263

Horianopoulos LC, Hu G, Caza M, Schmitt K, Overby P, Johnson JD, Valerius O, Braus GH, Kronstad JW. (2020). The Novel J-Domain Protein Mrj1 is Required for Mitochondrial Respiration and Virulence in Cryptococcus neoformans. mBio. 11(3). https://doi.org/10.1128/mbio.01127-20

Horianopoulos LC, Kronstad JW. (2021) Chaperone Networks in Fungal Pathogens of Humans. Journal of Fungi. 7(3), 209. https://doi.org/10.3390/jof7030209